Epifaunistic Arthropod Parasites of the Four-Striped Mouse, Rhabdomys Pumilio, in the Western Cape Province, South Africa

Abstract

Flea, lice, mite, and tick species associated with 510 Rhabdomys pumilio were collected at 9 localities in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. The aims of the study were first to quantify the species richness, prevalence, and relative mean intensity of infestation of epifaunistic arthropod species associated with R. pumilio, and second to determine temporal variations in the mean abundance of the parasitic arthropods. Each mouse was examined under a stereoscopic microscope and its parasites were removed, identified, and quantified. The epifaunal population was made up of more than 25,000 individuals and included 8 flea, 1 sucking louse, 11 mite, and 13 ixodid tick species. Female-biased sex ratios were noted for 9 (30%) of the ectoparasite species. Three undescribed mite and 1 undescribed tick species were recovered, and new locality records for 2 flea, the louse, and 2 mite species were documented. A phoretic host association between a nonparasitic mite species, Psylloglyphus uilenbergi kivuensis, and 3 flea species, Chiastopsylla rossi, Hypsophthalmus temporis, and Listropsylla agrippinae, was recorded. The mean abundance of the parasitic mite and insect species were higher during the cold wet season, whereas ticks were more numerous during the warm dry months. The large number of ectoparasite species on R. pumilio, a locally abundant and regionally widespread species, is of medical and veterinary importance particularly in relation to the transmission of pathogens such as Anaplasma marginale, Babesia caballi, and Babesia canis to domestic animals; Rickettsia conori; Yersinia pestis; and the viral disease Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever to humans.

Ectoparasite diversity in the eastern rock sengis (Elephantulus myurus): the effect of seasonality and host sex

“…Increases in mite abundance with rainfall have previously been reported for several other mite species in South Africa irrespective of whether rainfall occurs during winter (Matthee et al 2007;Archer et al 2014) or summer (Viljoen et al 2011) as in the current study. Unlike R. warburtoni/arnoldi the abundance of Ixodes spp.…”

“…infest murid rodents and sengis are hence only accidental hosts which may account for their low prevalence and abundance in the current study (Horak et al 2005;Matthee et al 2007;Apanaskevich et al 2007). …”

“…Parasite burdens may, however, also be increased during summer because the host diverts resources for parasite defences into reproductive activities (Altizer et al 2006). Seasonal variation in ectoparasite burdens has been recorded by a number of studies carried out in different regions of Africa including South Africa and irrespective of whether those were carried out in summer or winter rainfall regions rainfall patterns appeared to play a major role in affecting these patterns (Fourie et al 1992(Fourie et al , 2005Matthee et al 2007;Lutermann et al 2012aLutermann et al , 2012b. However, most of these studies have focused on ticks.…”

Ectoparasite Burdens of the Common Mole-Rat (Cryptomys hottentotus hottentotus) From the Cape Provinces of South Africa

“…Such aggregation could have implications for the sex ratio of ectoparasite species due to the isolation of infrapopulations on individual hosts (Marshall, 1981;Poulin, 2007). The increasing isolation of such infrapopulations with decreasing ectoparasite prevalence and a resulting increased risk of inbreeding has been invoked to explain the commonly observed female bias of ectoparasites (Marshall, 1981;Matthee et al, 2007;Krasnov, 2008). In such populations, only a small number of males are required to fertilize all females, and females exhibit female-biased offspring sex ratios, resulting in reduced local mate competition (Hamilton, 1967).…”

“…Ectoparasites that have developmental stages that live off the host are thought to be particularly susceptible to effects associated with the surrounding habitat (Vinarski et al, 2007;Krasnov, 2008). However, no taxon-specific pattern is apparent, and although some studies have shown that lower levels of humidity can reduce the abundances (Krasnov, 2008;Viljoen et al, 2011), others have found the opposite pattern (Fabiyi, 1996;Matthee et al, 2007).…”